


Serendipity

by shindouchrono



Category: Elsword (Video Game)
Genre: Gen, Time trouble, implied/one-sided addeve, what plot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-02
Updated: 2018-03-02
Packaged: 2019-03-26 00:57:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,586
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13846686
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shindouchrono/pseuds/shindouchrono
Summary: The El Search Party make their way slowly through the snow, and finally there's a town in sight. Ara is the first once to notice, shouting and twirling her spear excitedly. Add partially hopes she trips, if only to quiet a bit of the noise.





	Serendipity

There's a snowstorm. Involuntarily, Add wraps his jacket tighter around his body. For a split second, he considers buttoning it up for extra warmth. It'd mess up his well tailored outfit, so he gives up on the idea quickly.

He takes a quick glance around at the rest of the El Search Party. Honestly, aside from Chung -- Add was dressed the warmest, which was saying something. Maybe tied with Ciel.

They make their way slowly through the snow, and finally there's a town in sight. Ara is the first once to notice, shouting and twirling her spear excitedly. Add partially hopes she trips, if only to quiet a bit of the noise.

Ignoring Rena’s call of 'be careful!’ Elsword runs to the town in the (admittedly short) distance. Eve follows quickly after the red haired boy.

Add feels a rush of disdain.

Of course, it didn't particularly matter to him where the two of them went together. No, not at all.

It doesn't really matter who sets off with who, since they were in a party, therefore always headed to the same destination. So, Elsword and Eve walking side-by-side into a town that they were _all_ going to was meaningless. All technicalities considered, they were all _basically_ walking together.

Yeah. Add didn't care at all. Still, he slows his pace and focuses his eyes on the ground. He stops to look up when he spots a someone in his peripheral vision.

Rena beams at him. Even with her outfit, she doesn't appear to be cold at all. Perhaps it was a trait that appeared frequently in Elves, or maybe she just wanted to appear as tougher. “Are you cold, Add?”

He blinks in response, caught off guard by the sudden question pertaining to him, rather than Rena herself. “Who wouldn't be? The snow is nearly up to our ankles.” Add crosses his arms around his chest, resuming his staring contest with the ground as they walk.

At first, she doesn't reply. Then, there's a small sound of laughter. “You can't just admit you're cold?”

“...”

“I think you're warm on the inside. In your heart.”

Add scoffs. “Stop saying nonsense. Besides, where did that even come from? Suddenly we're in a holiday film?”

Rena nods her head sagely, hair waving as she moves. “You're absolutely right, Add. We need to make sure everyone has winter gear. Hopefully, this town will have the supplies we need, and a place to stay.”

“How did you get from this to that…”

Add’s words go partially ignored, but this time it's understandable. The El Search Party enter the town, hustle and bustle a stark contrast to the snowy walls surrounding it. It's incredibly lively, to say the least.

Food stalls, fluffy coats, drinks of all kinds, jewelry -- many things the common person would desire.

For Add, though, these markets showed to be no entertainment nor interest. He laughs loudly, causing a few townspeople to give him an odd look.

This sort of festive, cheery, _loose_ attitude rubbed Add the wrong way. However, the rest of the Party seemed to be enjoying themselves. Which didn’t surprise him in the least.

Rena claps her hands, calling the group's attention.

“Okay, everyone! Raven and I are going to try and find lodging for all of us. When we're done, we'll be right next to that lemonade truck. Feel free to join us if you wish, but it might make for better entertainment if you stay here.”

There's a few nods, then Raven and Rena head out. Add watches as their backs slowly fade into the distance, then gives a light chuckle. Eve briefly glances his way, but looks back at Elsword before even a second has passed.

“I'm going to go this way, then.” Add shoves his hands in his pockets, not waiting for a reply. It's only a few paces away before he hears the near-silent sound of feet on floor. When he turns, he's met with disappointment.

It's just Ara.

“Mr. Add! Would you like to walk around the town together?”

_No,_ he thinks,  _I_ _'d really not._

“Do as you please. Just don't get in my way.”

Ara smiles brightly. “Thank you, Mr. Add! But, if I may ask --.”

“You may _not_.”

“Am I in your way? Could it be Mr. Add has some sort of plans here? Could he have possibly been here before?” Ara asks, totally disregarding and _ignoring_ Add’s refusal to listen to her words.

“Kuhuhu... Figure that out on your own.”

“But it's so much easier if you tell me, Mr. Add!”

Realizing she's not going to give up, Add caves in.

“Sorry to disappoint, but I'm not actually looking for anything in particular, nor have I been here before.”

“Are you sure?” Ara tilts her head at him. In that second, Add is vaguely reminded of a puppy. “Mr. Add, you seemed awfully impatient to get going.”

Add narrows his eyes into a fierce gaze, but it passes right over Ara’s head. She doesn't make any sort of response to his attempt at intimidation.

“What kind of things are you seeing? I didn’t have any particular need to be anywhere.” As he finishes, Add keeps walking. Ara follows behind him.

When he speeds up, so does she. When he slows down, so does she.

Whatever.

“Mr. Add, maybe we should go look at clothes? You seem rather cold.” Ara’s voice is bright as she speaks, but Add can easily hear the kindness, worry and care in her voice.

He stiffens, shaking his head. “Hmph. You should look in a mirror. One day, we’re gonna find you frozen solid. You should make better choices with your outfits.”

“Aw, thank you! That’s really nice of you to worry about me like that.”

“Who’s worried?! I’m saying that you’re an idiot--...” Add sighs, placing his face in his hand for a brief second. “Whatever.”

She’s seriously an idiot. You’d think someone like her would be more prepared for the cold weather, but thinking about it, their whole party was ill-equipped for the cold. Add grumbles to himself about the idiocy of his whole group.

“Ooh, Mr. Add! Look! That coat looks really warm. Do you want to go inside and look?” Ara points to a coat being showcased. Add looks up at the store sign, and shrugs his shoulders.

“Do whatever you want.”

Ara beams, and heads in. Then, when Add doesn’t follow her -- she waves her hand, motioning for Add to come her way. Reluctantly, he walks in behind her.

It’s much warmer in the store than it was outside. Add’s slightly relieved, and the tension evident in his shoulders has faded somewhat. Ara’s already looking around. He shoves his hands deep into his pockets as he watches.

“Look, look! Isn’t this cute?” Ara holds up a white coat, lined with fur. Cute? Not so much, to Add at least. It did look warm, though -- along with seeming light enough for combat.

Since Add commonly took the role of a backrow supporter, cracking space-time from a distance, this didn’t seem like a bad choice. For the ones closer to the front, like Ara, Raven and Elsword, something like this wouldn’t do. Their defenses would be too low -- at least for Add’s comfort.

It’s not like he _cared_ if they got hurt, but it would hinder their victories.

“You should try it on! It looks like your size!”

Add narrows his eyes at Ara. The tag reads XS. Add feels like he’s being made fun of. Surely that wasn’t Ara’s intention, he reminds himself, but the irritation is definitely there. Before he can protest, Ara shoves the garment into his arms, staring at him with glimmer in her eyes. Add forces himself to stay silent, slipping the jacket on.

He loathes to say it, but it does fit perfectly. Ara must have an eye for these sorts of things.

“It suits you, Mr. Add!”

...What does that mean, exactly? Add feels like if he asked, he’d get an answer that made absolutely no sense, so he doesn’t ask. Suddenly, Ara moves closer, reaching at Add’s neck.

He flinches out of her reach, but she’s much faster. She flipped up Add’s hood of his normal jacket. Ara smiles.

“Now your ears can be warm!”

_Seriously?!_

Add’s face burned at the sudden contact. He really hated this girl’s impulse to just randomly touch people as she pleased! “D-don’t do something like that so suddenly!”

At his scolding, Ara looks slightly discouraged. He almost feels bad.

“Sorry… I just thought it would look cute, since Mr. Add as the kitty ears on his hoodie…”

Add’s grateful for his hood right now, so Ara can’t see the bright blush Add could feel on his ears. “Don’t call me that.”

“But it’s true! Mr. Add does look --...!” Cutting Ara off, the door to the shop opens. Add turns his head as it does, and sighs.

“There you are! We’ve been looking for you two.” Rena says, with Raven, Elsword, and Eve right behind her. “We got our rooms! Lu and Ciel are just in the candy shop near here. We’re in no rush, though. We don’t get times like this often…” Rena trails off, looking at Add as she does.

He takes a step back, not liking the look in her eyes.

“Oh, were you trying on clothes?” Elsword asks, peeking over to look.

Everyone’s eyes are suddenly on Add. It’s too warm in the shop for comfort.

“Mhm!” Ara nods. “I wanted Mr. Add to try this on! Doesn’t it look nice on him?”

Add really wishes she would stop talking.

Rena giggles. “It does. It suits you, Add.”

_What does that even mean?!_

Raven turns to her, raising his eyebrow. “Speaking of, wouldn’t it be wise for us to all get winter wear? It’s rather cold.”

“Nasods don’t get cold, so I won’t require such things.” Eve remarks. Add watches her carefully, but she isn’t looking back at him.

Not like that’s anything new.

Still, she doesn’t get cold? Add had expected something along those lines, but once it’s come up -- it intrigues him. Most machines react a certain way in the cold, the same with the heat. His Dynamos, for example, could sometimes be prone to slowness in extreme heat. Add had long ago realized that, using that as one of the motivations for a cooling function. The other reason being so he himself doesn’t overheat. Not to mention the disgust that came hand-in-hand with sweating.

The urge to examine Eve nearly overwhelms him. He laughs to himself, ignoring Ara’s confused stare.

“That’s no good!” Elsword protests, hands on his hips. “Even if you don’t get cold, you should still bundle up like the rest of us, just to be safe!” As if to emphasize his point, he picks up a scarf and wraps it around Eve’s neck. It’s a bright red scarf, contrasting the rest of Eve’s attire.

Add bitterly looks away.

“What about you? Humans get cold. You should consider your own problems before you attempt to resolve others.” Eve responds bluntly.

“I doubt you’d need to worry about him.” Add says, back to the group as he picks through thermal shirts on a rack. “Idiots don’t catch colds, as they say.”

“I cannot seem to recall a time when you’ve caught a cold.” Eve fires back.

Her cool response brings a strange grin to his face.

“Kukuku, there’s our answer to why none of us ever seem to be sick.” He turns to meet her chilling gaze, grin still present on his face.

“Well,  _I'_ _m_ sick of you two bickering all the time.” Rena says, sighing.

Add turns his face away. Out of the corner of his eye, he sees Eve do the same.

“We are not arguing. I’m simply proving him wrong.”

Add crosses his arms. “Who’s the wrong one, exactly? Kukuku…” His amused tone doesn’t match his body language.

Eve glares in his direction.

“Anyways,” Rena walks in between the two of them. “Raven’s right. We should be sure to get warmer clothes. Frostbite isn’t ideal.”

After that, there’s only minimal arguing, but that’s only because Eve refuses to look in Add’s direction.

Yet she still claims to have no emotions. What a farce!

They make their way up to the shopkeeper’s counter, and Add notices Eve’s still wearing the scarf wrapped around her neck. The bright red stands out against Eve’s pale skin. Add’s heart pounds incessantly in his chest. A dark feeling grabs at his stomach. The red is reminiscent of Elsword.

He pushes the feeling down, but feels a small hint of joy when he watches her take it off so they can pay for it. He seriously doubted Elsword would wrap it around her neck again.

Traitorously, his brain weaves a scenario of Add himself wrapping the scarf delicately around her neck. Frustrated, Add musses up his hair -- though it doesn’t really look any different. A thick white lock of hair partially obscures his vision, and he pushes it out of the way.

It falls back into place.

Once Add’s given up, he looks up to see Rena looking in her direction. An amused grin spreads across her face, and Add quickly looks away, embarrassed.

Why? He was just moving his hair out of his eyes. It’s not like he needed to be embarrassed over something like that. Still, he wanted to get out of there quickly.

“I have some spare hair bands if you need them.” Rena smiles. They’re all making their way back to the lodge they’re staying at, and Rena is once again at his side as they walk.

Add shakes his head. “No. It’s fine the way it is.”

“Surely it must be bothersome to have hair in your eyes all the time. Maybe a headband? I have one that I’m sure would suit you.”

“Stop making fun of me.” Add’s frowning.

Rena blinks, confused. “Ah… Did I tease you too much? I’m sorry. The face you were making made it hard not to.” She doesn’t look apologetic at all.

“What sort of apology is that?”

“I’m serious, though.” Rena looks just above at Add’s eyes, though her eyes move lower to meet his. Add looks away. “You wouldn’t want your hair to obscure your vision so you crash into a tree during battle.”

She makes a fair point, but Add could really stand for Rena to change her tone. He doesn’t respond, and she takes that as a sign to keep talking.

“Your hair grows pretty quickly, doesn’t it? Want me to cut it for you? I’m pretty good at cutting hair!”

In all honesty, Add didn’t doubt this about her at all. Rena was multi-talented and had proven time and time again to excel at many things, regardless of the handiwork needed. He debates it over in his head. All this time, he’d been lazily cutting it himself -- it’s not like his appearance would make a huge difference to anything, nor did he care about it. Really, he didn’t.

“Sure.”

Rena falls silent, shocked. Add walks ahead of her, and she makes a show of rushing to catch up. “Wait, really? You agreed so easily?”

Add raises an eyebrow. “Is this such a shock to you? You made a good point, so fine. Whatever. Just don’t do anything stupid. Just a trim.”

Rena wraps her arm around his neck in a stifling headlock. He wiggles, trying to get free -- but Rena’s too strong. Add feels strangled. “L-Let go!”

Eve turns around at the sudden noise, and Add spots her do this. He struggles harder against Rena's headlock, but to no avail. It's getting somewhat hard to breathe -- Rena notices his distress and lets him go.

Add bends over, hacking.

“Was it too much? I'm sorry, Add.”

_You say that every time! If you're so sorry then stop doing it!_

“I heard from the innkeeper that they have really fantastic hot chocolate!”

Add finishes his coughing fit. “Changing the subject before I can say anything? Kukuku, what an obvious strategy.”

Suddenly bringing up something Add liked to distract him. Actually, did Rena even know he liked chocolate?

Whatever. It was probably best to not think about it too much.

Add looks forward at the El Search Party. They're all decked out in winter clothes. Even with Ara and Elsword’s insistence that they'd be fine, Rena made sure that everyone got something.

The inn certainly was cozy. The second they've entered, a warm atmosphere surrounds them like a blanket. Add spots something that looks similar to a bar, but doesn't seem to serve alcohol. It's probably where the hot chocolate Rena was talking about is. A kind looking older woman standing there smiles and waves at Add. He purses his lips and turns away.

Rena makes enthusiastic conversation with the innkeeper, Raven standing somewhat stiffly at her side, nodding during certain points of the conversation. Lu and Ciel sit by the chairs next to the fireplace, and Elsword, Eve and Chung are at a table with a large array of sweets. Add turns his head to look at Ara, who's peering at the drink bar(?).

Well, out of all of them, the easiest to talk to was Ara. If Add kept standing there, someone would annoyingly try and talk to him. So… his choice had practically made itself. Add walks over to where Ara is, who spots him and grins.

“Mr. Add! Do you want something too? I'm thinking about getting the sweet tea!”

“Kukuk, I'm thinking about it.”

The woman at the bar nods her head. “What sort of things do you like, young’un?”

Add furrows his brows. “Don't call me that. Kukuku, I have no interests in such things.”

“Eh? But Rena said she saw you happily eating chocolate… do you not like it?”

Add’s face flushes.

“What?!”

He could have sworn no one was around when he ate it! Rena, that sneaky, overly chatty elf…

Add crosses his arms, turning his head away. “It's not like I _dislike_ it.” The woman is smiling gently at him, again.

She laughs.

“You don't need to act stubborn about liking something.” She winks at him. “Girls don't like that sort of thing, you know?”

“Who ever said I had any interest in --...!”

With a clink, the woman sets a steaming mug on the counter. Add could smell the sweet scent, even from a distance. It would… probably taste really good.

He lifts it up. The mug is warm.

Tentatively, Add lifts it up to his lips.

The satisfaction of being right is non-existent. It is delicious. The woman smiles expectantly at Add. He looks away, pursing his lips.

“It's…”

Silence. Add suddenly realizes what the woman's smile reminds him of. A memory tucked away. His throat feels dry, so Add drinks more of it. It’s warm and sweet.

“...good.”

For a split second, Add thinks his voice was quiet enough that no one heard. When he looks up, he sees both Ara and the woman beaming at him. Embarrassed, Add flips his hood up and turns away.

He also finishes the drink, because it would be a waste otherwise.

Now, he sits alone at the fireplace. The sun has long set, and most of the El Search Party had retired to their rooms. Add hears the sound of creaking on the staircase, looking up to see who it was.

Rena waves at him, then sits down next to him. Add makes a non-subtle movement further from her, but Rena doesn’t look hurt at all. Her smile is ever-present.

“You ought to get some rest, Add.”

He raises his eyebrow. “Coming from another who’s still awake.”

Rena laughs. “I suppose you’re right. While we’re both awake, would you like me to cut your hair now?”

Add sighs, shrugging his shoulders. “Whatever.”

The elf, of course, takes this positively and disappears for a brief moment to grab supplies. She returns quickly, grin not yet faded. She pulls out a wooden chair right in front of her, motioning for Add to get up and sit in it.

Once he’s seated, she brushes through his hair with her fingers. Add shuts his eyes. Rena’s touch is gentle as she combs through his hair. Add _almost_ feels like he’s going to fall asleep, but forces himself to stay conscious. He’d never hear the end of it if he did succumb to a comfortable sleep -- that was motivation enough.

He can hear the sound of scissors. It seems like Rena’s begun on the back of his neck.

“Did you cut your hair on your own before this?”

_What?_

“Does it matter?”

“Hm… not really. I was just curious.”

Add sighs.

“I did. Kukuku, what’s wrong, is it not up to your standards?”

Rena pushes a thick tuft of hair behind Add’s ear. “No, I think you did a great job all on your own.”

His heart feels like it’s dropping to his stomach -- or like it grew legs and wanted to escape. What exactly is she trying to say? It’s just hair. Who cares.

Add can feel her hand near the hair on the sides of his face, and abruptly speaks. “Keep the sides longer.”

“You don’t like your ears showing?”

Add doesn’t respond.

Rena giggles. “Is it because they turn red so easily?” As she says this, Rena pushes down on Add’s shoulders, preventing him from getting up and leaving.

_Seriously, she’s too powerful!_

“S-Shut up! It’s nothing like that!”

Rena laughs again, and Add feels incredibly patronized. “If you say so. Here, I’m going to trim your bangs now, so make sure you keep your eyes closed. I don’t want hair in your eyes… or mouth.”

_Tell me to shut up like a normal person, not in some roundabout way._

Add thinks this to himself, annoyed, but obediently keeps his mouth shut. Rena starts to snip at his bangs.

She goes on for a while, but after a while, the scissors stop -- so Add slowly opens one eye. Rena is looking at him with a satisfied expression.

“It looks good! I did a great job.”

“Aren’t you embarrassed to praise yourself like that?”

“Should I be?”

“Who knows, kukuku...” Despite his cocky sounding comment, Add falls silent. Rena suddenly pats him on the head -- Add recoils, but then Rena takes him in her arms, hugging him tightly. “Let go of me!”

“I was right about the hot chocolate, wasn’t I? Ara said you thought it was good.”

Add struggles uselessly against Rena for what feels like the thousandth time today. “Kahaha, I just said that to keep the mood up. It wasn’t like I thought anything particular about it.”

“Eh? Add, could it be you’re embarrassed about liking sweet things? There’s no need, you know. No one will judge you. Besides, it couldn’t be as bad as Ciel’s obsession with what he finds cute.”

“Don’t compare me to him! We’re nothing alike.”

“No one will say anything about it, Add. It’s okay to like the things you like. We’re friends here, and we accept each other without discrimination.”

Add clicks his tongue. “You’re all stupidly soft.”

“Maybe we are.” Rena’s looking right into Add’s eyes, arms still wrapped tightly around his waist. At least it’s not a chokehold. “But you are, too.”

Add’s jaw falls open.

“I’m… not…”

Just like that, Rena lets him go and ruffles his hair. “Sleep well tonight, Add. Make sure you go to sleep soon, okay?”

She walks up the stairs, and Add’s too shellshocked to say anything in response. It takes him a couple minutes to collect himself, before slowly making his way to his designated bedroom. For once, a lodge they’re staying at has enough space for seperate rooms. Add partially wishes he wasn’t alone, if only so he could find something other than himself to nitpick at.

He scratches the back of his neck. Rena did really cut it -- well, of course she did. Add walks over to check his appearance in the mirror. It looks more or less the same, the only real difference being the length. Add can actually see without his bangs obscuring his vision.

He stares down himself in the mirror, glaring at the reflection staring back.

Add is disgusted with the boy looking into his eyes.

He’d been cutting his own hair ever since his mother had stopped cutting it... which was a while ago. A very long while ago, stretched out to eternity. In captivity, they’d tell him to do it himself, then would get angry once he’d done it incorrectly. Doing it himself was far better than having his captors do it. The one time they did was a memory Add would prefer to keep repressed.

Despite himself, Add sighs. Having someone other than himself cut his hair felt… nice. Intimate, even.

It reminded him of his mother.

As soon as the thought makes its way into Add’s head, his body physically recoils. He takes a sharp inhale, bending over the bathroom sink. Vertigo hits him, followed by a wave of nausea.

It’s okay. He’ll succeed. He’d do whatever it takes to see his most precious person again. Without hesitation, Add would discard all of his tomorrows if it meant a 'yesterday' with that person. Breaking the laws of the world felt like child’s play in comparison to the feelings burning in his chest.

Maybe Rena was right. Had he become stupidly soft like the rest of them? Would she still think the same way if she knew what Add planned to do? To take Eve’s core meant ending her life. But, what other choice did he have?

Defying time was a sin. What was one more?

The friendly smiles and the playful banter, the overly loud and stupidly soft El Search Party would crumble into nothingness once Add took away Eve’s precious core. Eve would never look in his direction again. He wouldn’t get to see her glare or hear her insistence on her lack of emotion ever again. Every inch of Eve would lose its purpose. She'd be nothing more than scrap metal.

A painful feeling overtakes Add’s heart. He clenches his fist, then bends down over the counter, looking back at his loathsome reflection. Add hated himself even more when he saw that white haired boy’s eyes fill with tears, slowly dripping down pale cheeks, flushed with emotion.

He slams his fist into the mirror. There’s a slight sting of pain, but both Add and the mirror didn’t take any damage from the hit. Add glares at the bright eyes looking back. The light in them -- long lost, long faded -- began to rise and burn like it had never been extinguished in the first place.

No matter what, he wouldn’t lose sight of his goal.

The warmth of the hot chocolate remains in Add’s memory, along with the delicate sweet taste -- Add’s favorite. Was he regretting drinking it so quickly, especially once it was gone? It didn’t matter if he did or didn’t, since it was gone. Mourning and regretting make no difference. The only change would happen once you took action.

That’s right. This was Add’s only choice. It was the right decision. Add falls asleep, with conflicting pain and warmth. Love and hatred. Desire and disgust. It’s a restless sleep, but it’s sleep nonetheless.

At the very least, Add was glad that no one was there to see the tears that fell down his cheeks as he drifted off to sleep.

 

**Author's Note:**

> When I was younger, my Mom's friend came by with this frozen hot chocolate mix that was from some movie. I never saw the movie, nor did I figure out how to make the hot chocolate... but I thought the title was fitting. This is also (drum roll) the first Elsword fic I ever wrote!  
> This can be considered Time Trouble (the novels) canon, but there's no, like, set place... Don't think about it too hard and you'll be fine!
> 
> Either way, thank you very much for reading, and I hope you had a fantastic day! If you enjoyed my fic, feel free to leave a kudo, comment, or come talk to me on twitter @chronojetdragon!


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